


i'm looking for something, i finally found it right here

by LilacsAndLilies



Category: Iron Man (Movies), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies), Spider-Man - All Media Types
Genre: Alternate Universe - Soulmates, First Meetings, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Identity Reveal, M/M, Soulmate-Identifying Marks, Tony Stark Acting as Harley Keener's Parental Figure, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-06-17
Updated: 2020-06-17
Packaged: 2021-03-03 21:27:35
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,805
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24762331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/LilacsAndLilies/pseuds/LilacsAndLilies
Summary: Everybody is born with a number printed neatly on the inside of their wrists. The number is a marker, on a scale from 0 to 10, of how dangerous your soulmate is. It means different things to different people, but it is almost always a good indicator of how much damage you could do, should you choose to.Harley is a little scared of the 8 on his wrist, but he can't wait to find his soulmate anyway.
Relationships: Harley Keener/Peter Parker
Comments: 30
Kudos: 689
Collections: Parkner Soulmate Collection, The Best Harley Keener & (or /) Peter Parker Fics, The Best of the Best MCU Fics





	i'm looking for something, i finally found it right here

**Author's Note:**

> Title from Poetry by Wrabel

Everybody is born with a number printed neatly on the inside of their wrists. The number is a marker, on a scale from 0 to 10, of how dangerous your soulmate is. It means different things to different people, but it is almost always a good indicator of how much damage you could do, should you choose to.

The number changes over time as you grow, something rising, sometimes falling. At first, the numbers were used as a way to lock down potential criminals, create watchlists. But it soon became clear that it was impossible to know for certain who your soulmate was. 

You were destined to meet them and know them, but whether you figure out who your soulmate is or not is up to fate. Most people never truly know for certain who their soulmate is. Eventually, people stopped caring. It was a tale for the young, the fanciful, and the foolish. Everyone else lived life as they did, knowing they would meet their soulmate, and hoping they picked the right person out of everyone they knew. 

Most people's numbers change quite a few times. The change is usually gradual and set around milestones. Every baby starts at 0. The number on their soulmate's wrist changes once as they grow older, find a job, make a life for themselves. All vague things that never helped anyone find their soulmate. 

The only people who ever had any luck finding a soulmate were the ones whose numbers jumped suddenly. Their changes were tied to events, and when you were destined to meet them, it wasn't hard to compare specific events in an acquaintance's life with the jumps in number on your skin. 

Harley was one of those few who held out hope about knowing who his soulmate was. 

His parents had guessed wrong. They thought they found their soulmates but all they found was heartache. Harley swore he wouldn't make the same mistake. At the ripe age of 5, when his father left the house, Harley decided to start a list, keeping track of every time his number changed. He would make his comparisons, make sure his soulmate was his. 

Now, Harley was 16 and getting ready to spend summer vacation at Stark Tower. The paper was tucked deep into his suitcase, almost unnecessary with how he had committed every change to memory. 

He stepped onto the elevator, glancing down at the 8 on his wrist. The number used to scare him. It had jumped to an 8 last fall. Most teenagers had maybe a 3s or 4s. Even adults were usually 5. So for his soulmate to have an 8? 8s were people with money, power, or intelligence, and a lot of it. 

Tony told him Pepper had a 9 on her wrist. Tony Stark was a 9. It made sense. He was Iron Man, a billionaire, a genius, and could probably do anything he set his mind to. Tony was still a good person though. So hopefully his 8 was still a good person. 

The elevator doors pulled open and Harley saw Tony standing in front of him.

"Hey kid. How was the trip?" He walked over and gave Harley a hug.

"It was fine."

"Alright well then, this is Peter, he's the other intern I was telling you about." Tony gestured to a brunette boy standing next to him. Harley looked him over. So this was the infamous intern he kept hearing about. He was kind of cute. "He's going to show you to your room while I make lunch. That was an early plane, I assume you're starving?" Tony ran through his words quickly, not really giving Harley a chance to say or do anything. 

Harley nodded and Tony gave him a warm smile. Harley didn’t remember the other man being this open. It was nice. 

"Then I'll leave you two to get introduced." He quickly walked away towards the kitchen. 

Harley took a cautious step forward, holding his hand out to the meek boy. "Harley Keener, at your service."

Peter grabbed his hand and shook it, a faint 6 peeking out from under his sleeve. "Peter Parker. It's nice to meet you."

Harley gestured towards the kitchen. "Is it just me, or was he acting odd?"

Peter smiled. "He's nervous. He wants us to get along."

"Are we going to get along?" Harley raised an eyebrow, a smirk growing on his face. He didn't quite know how exactly he wanted to get along, but he definitely did.

"Depends on you." Peter turned around and began walking towards the hallway. When he realized Harley wasn’t following, he turned and gestured for the other boy to do so. 

Peter led Harley down the hall to a room. The walls were painted lime green and there were gadgets and tables all around. "This is your room." Peter gestured inside. Then he took a step out and pointed to the room next door. "And this is mine."

Harley walked in and dropped his bag on the ground. "Wow, it's so… big."

Peter laughed. "Yeah. Mr. Stark goes above and beyond.”

“Mr. Stark?” Harley snorted. “He makes you call him that?”

“Actually, he begs me not to.” Peter gave him a sly smile. “But I’m polite and can’t stop.”

Harley burst out laughing. He didn’t know what he was expecting from Peter, but the boy was so different from everything he imagined.

Peter waited as Harley unpacked before leading him back towards the kitchen. Inside, Pepper and Tony were both standing next to each other, grabbing plates and cleaning up pots. 

Pepper put down the towel in her hand and moved to great Harley. “Hello Harley, how was your trip?”

“It was fine ma’am.”

She waved him off. “Call me Pepper.”

Harley nodded, fully intending not to call her that. They settled into lunch, a quiet conversation falling over them. After lunch, they headed over to the lab, where Tony showed him around and they all got to work. They worked and they talked and Harley learned more about New York and about Peter Parker. Peter talked about school and how he met Tony and in return, Harley told him about Rose Hill and his sister and the incident with the Mandarin. The hours quickly passed by and Harley could honestly say this was the most relaxed he had felt in a long time.

At around 6, Peter perked up. “Mr. Stark, it’s 6. I gotta go.”

Tony looked up from the project in his hands. “Already?” He picked up a towel and wiped the grease off his hands. “You’re going out now?” 

Peter nodded, picking up his backpack. “Bye!”

“See you tomorrow underoos. Don’t be late or your aunt will kill me.” Tony waved and went back to his work. 

Peter saluted and walked out of the room. Harley took his chance to ask, “Aunt?”

Tony put down his tools again and turned to Harley. “Peter lives with his aunt. His parents died when he was 7. His aunt and uncle took him in. Then when he was 13, his uncle died. His aunt is the only legal family he has left. I keep trying to get the two of them to move into the tower permanently, but May won’t budge. 

Harley just nodded, but his thoughts went back to the numbers so constantly running through his head. Age 7, his soulmate’s numbers went from 3 to 2. Age 13, his soulmate’s numbers went from 4 to 7. Changes usually corresponded to major life events, but how would the death of a family member make anyone less or more dangerous? Unless it was linked to opportunity?

“Tony, who were his parents?”

Tony’s face scrunched up in confusion. “May and Richard Parker. Why?”

“Did they work for anyone important?”

“Oscorp. They were pretty high up too. Peter’s still friends with Harry Osborn. Why are you asking?” 

“No reason. Just curious.” Harley tried to play it off as nonchalance. 

Tony raised an eyebrow. “I highly doubt that but ok. Just- Peter is a very closed person. For all that he wears his heart on his sleeve, he has his secrets and he has a lot of them. Don’t go digging. Don’t hurt him.”

Harley was surprised by the solemnity of Tony’s voice. He nodded, making his promises to keep his snooping to a minimum. He pushed the list and its coincidences into the back of his head and kept working.

* * *

The next few days were a whirlwind of events. Peter and Harley spent more time together touring the city and visiting places. Peter had introduced Harley to all of his friends and Harley could feel himself falling a little deeper and deeper in love with Peter with every passing minute. 

With that, came a stronger and stronger need for some proof. Harley felt like they fit together, like they were meant to spend time together. Everything just clicked, and honestly, Harley had never been happier. He so desperately wanted them to be soulmates, but it didn’t make sense. Peter was sweet and brilliant, but he wasn’t dangerous. He wasn’t an 8. And Harley wasn’t going to make a move until he knew for sure.

Knowing for sure comes in a lot of different ways, as it turns out. 

One of those ways involved Spider-Man crashing through the window at midnight. 

Harley watched in shock as the red and blue clad vigilante came through, the glass shattering from a mistimed swing. The shards fell everywhere, one of them embedded in the hero’s stomach. Harley watched as the hero pulled off his mask, and he felt time slow.

The overwhelming shock of seeing that Peter was the one under the mask was only burst by the pained moan that escaped Peter’s lips. The groans prompted Harley into action as he picked up the brunette and carried him down to the medical bay. Harley only barely processed how light he felt when the doctors came and took Peter away.

Tony came rushing down only to stop at the sight of Harley standing in the hallway alone, a closed door in front of him. The older man walked over and placed a hand on Harley’s shoulder. “You saw who Spidey was?”

Harley let out a deep sigh. “Why didn’t he tell me? Didn’t he trust me?”

Tony frowned and pulled Harley into one of the nearby chairs. “He didn’t tell you because he wanted you safe.”

“That seems like a bullshit reason to me.” 

Tony let out a short laugh. “Yeah, well, when something gets into Pete’s head, there’s no stopping it.”

“I can keep myself safe.”

“Oh really?” 

Harley paused. “I- I built myself my own version of the Iron Man suit. I know how to use it and everything.”

Tony froze. “You built it from memory?”

Harley nodded. “I was going to tell you later.” He shook his head. “But that’s my point. I’m not defenseless.”

“Oh Harley. No one ever said you were. But Peter thinks he needs to hold the weight of the world on his shoulders, and none of us have ever been able to convince him otherwise. If you got hurt, he would blame himself.”

“I wish he wouldn’t.” 

Tony only gave him a sad smile. “Don’t we all?”

The conversation tapered back into silence as Harley tried to process everything. Peter was Spider-Man. The boy he liked-maybe-loved was a superhero. He felt the number on his skin glaring at him, burning into his skin. A superhero could be an 8.

“Tony, when did Peter become Spider-Man?” 

“He was bitten by a radioactive spider when he was 13. That gave him the powers. He started the superhero gig after his uncle died a few weeks later.”

Harley nodded. The jump to 7 made more sense. He could feel the excitement well up inside of him as the dates and numbers aligned. “And when did he become your intern?”

“He started coming around the lab last fall. Why?”

Last fall. When the number became an 8. An 8 for his access to resources, his physical powers, and his fame. The pieces finally clicked and Harley could see the bigger picture is startling clarity. 

“Peter Parker is my soulmate.”

The words sounded foreign on his tongue but so right. He repeated them again, enjoying the way they fit in his mouth.

“Peter Parker is my soulmate.”

“And how do you know?”

“My numbers, they changed every time Peter got powers or access to resources or something. The dates line up and- and- and I really really like him, so I hope he is.”

Tony smiled. “I can’t say I expected but I’m happy for you two. Just don’t get caught up on the numbers. If you like him, you like him. Don’t let those rule you.”

Harley nodded. He really did like Peter, but the numbers were a sense of security and confirmation just made him feel like he could breathe again. They would be ok. 

Suddenly, Harley remembered where he was, what had happened. “My soulmate is a superhero. One who probably gets hurt on a daily basis. He’s in there right now, being treated for something.” The panic that had temporarily left, came back with a roaring intensity.

“He’ll be fine. He’s survived worse.”

“That doesn’t make it any better.” 

“You’ll have to get used to this.” Tony gestured at the door. “Because he’s in there a lot. Mostly for little things, but still.”

It was at that moment the doctor opened the door. “He’s fine, he just needs rest. It was only a couple of stitches and a minor concussion.”

Harley and Tony let out matching sighs of relief before walking in to see Peter, quietly asleep. The nurse next to him said in a quiet whisper, “He’ll sleep through the night, we’ll let you know if he wakes.”

Harley and Tony nodded as they both headed off the bed. Harley of course, couldn’t sleep. Instead, he spent the night tossing and turning, worrying about Peter and what he might say. Would it be better to mention that they were soulmates, or should he ask him out first or? Soon enough, Harley fell into a fitful sleep.

The next morning Harley rushed through his routine and headed down to the med bay. As he walked through the hallway, a nurse told him Peter would be waking up soon. Harley nodded and headed inside, settling into a seat beside Peter and waiting.

It wasn’t a particularly long wait before Harley heard the deep breath and the shuffling of a blanket as Peter woke up.

“Ugh, what happened?”

“You crashed through a window.” Harley responded in a dry voice. “Of all of the ways you could have been injured, it was from mistiming the window opening and crashing the window.”

Peter gave him a sheepish look. Then his face twisted into horror as he realized what happened. “You know?”

Harley nodded. “Yup. Kinda hard not to when you crash in front of me in all of your red and blue glory.”

Peter started trying to apologize. “I- I wanted to tell-”

Harley held up a hand. “I know why you didn’t tell me, and it’s ok. I just- I hope you know you can trust me.”

Peter started nodding frantically. “I trust you.”

“Ok.” Harley sighed. “I had something else I wanted to tell you.” 

Peter sat up straight, looking at Harley. “What is it?”

Harley fumbled, looking for the right words to say. He spent all night, and still couldn’t figure them out. “I- I think we’re soulmates.”

Peter’s eyes grew wide. “Really?” He looked down at his wrist, his eyes focused on the number. “I guess that makes sense. My number jumped around the time you met Tony. It jumped again a few months ago.”

Harley tried to remember what he had done. “I- I might have built my own Iron Man suit.”

Peter’s eyes grew wide. “That’s so cool.”

Harley grinned. “Yeah. My numbers jumped when you became Spider-Man and stuff and I was really hoping you were my soulmate, so it works out.” Harley immediately slapped his hand on his face. He didn’t mean to say that last part.

Peter laughed, before stopping and curling in on himself, placing his hand on his wound.

“Sorry!”

“Not your fault.” Peter blinked and looked up at Harley. “So, you like me?”

“Yeah, I guess I do.”

“Well that’s good. I like you too.”

Harley let out a sigh of relief. “Good.”

“Good.”

“So…”

Peter smirked. “I think now is when you ask me on a date?”

“Oh! Uh, yeah. Peter Parker, would you like to go on a date with me?”

“I would love to.”

Harley smiled. He didn’t know what the future held, but he knew, whatever happened, they would be ok.

**Author's Note:**

> Harley pulled the tie off Peter. “You know, the exact moment that Pepper announced she was retiring and giving us the company, my number jumped to a 10.”
> 
> “Hmm. Interesting. Mine jumped to an 8.” He wrapped an arm about Harley’s waist.
> 
> “How do you feel, being one of the most dangerous men alive?” Harley leaned in, whispering in Peter’s ear.
> 
> “Not as dangerous as I could be if you don’t kiss me.” Peter smirked.
> 
> “But of course.” Harley pressed his lips onto Peter’s, his hand combing into Peter’s hair. They were definitely going to be ok.
> 
> \-----------
> 
> Talk to me on tumblr @lilacsandlilies4  
> or on discord @LilacsAndLilies#4691


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